Born and raised in Stuttgart, Germany, Barbara Gehrung is an alumna of Freie Waldorfschule Uhlandshöhe, the “mother school”, which was founded in 1919 by Rudolf Steiner and Emil Molt. Moving to Charlottesville with her husband to start a family, she was excited to find Charlottesville Waldorf School to educate her children and to volunteer for, deeply appreciating the love for learning and the world which was instilled in her through her education. Barbara is a current parent of a rising CWS middle schooler and of an alumna who is attending Charlottesville High School, and she has served on the CWS Board of Trustees since 2019.

Professionally, Barbara is partner in an architecture firm, Gehrung + Graham llc, specializing in energy-positive and net-zero energy design. Prior to moving to Charlottesville, she was faculty and project manager for her alma mater TU Darmstadt’s contribution to the U.S. Department of Solar Decathlon 2007, which both shaped her approach to architecture, and her love for the pioneer spirit of the United States. Barbara is one of the first certified passive house designers in the U.S and has won several awards for her passive house consulting projects, including affordable multi-family buildings for Habitat for Humanity in Washington D.C. and the ecoMOD South project for the University of Virginia.

In her spare time, Barbara enjoys listening to and making music, traveling, and spending time with friends, her family, and her dog.